Artists and musician team up for BAU show

There's plenty of cross-pollination behind the scenes at the Poetry of Place exhibit scheduled to open March 8 with a reception at the Beacon Artist Union (BAU) Gallery.

Next month will be mixed-media artist and BAU member Karen Allen's turn to display in the showcase gallery visible from the street, and she invited Jenn Wiggs, who lives in Missouri, to share the space.

"Jenn said that she always wanted a show in New York, so I found one," says Allen, who resides in Westchester County.

Allen discovered Wiggs' work online during the pandemic, and they gelled. During regular virtual visits, they discuss approach, technique and philosophy.

Another of Allen's partnerships will also be on display - with vibraphonist Chris Dingman. They met in October at an Ossining art fair after Dingman paused to study one of Allen's pieces. "I saw him ponder it for a while and then circle around it like a shark," Allen says.

For their collaboration, she lends the musician a piece of her art and "I connect with it and visualize the energy," says Dingman, who lives in Nyack. He improvises tones, splices them together and drenches the mix in effects, resulting in experimental ambient sounds.

Dingman will perform at the gallery during the opening reception with a hip-high vibraphone, a cross between a piano and a percussion instrument. His 4- to 6-minute compositions will be accessible through QR codes.

The Dingman track responding to Allen's "Shadow Hamadryade" stacks layers of cascading notes over a propulsive rhythm. Intertwining drone tones and a prominent hum compete for attention. After the emergence of a throbbing vocal, the song builds to a crescendo.

Another piece of music is inspired by Allen's "Third Eye of Hook Mountain," which augments the vaguely discernible features of the Nyack landmark with an underbelly of what could be a river of darkness or primordial layering. As Dingman's tones unfold, dynamics swell, notes seem to play at random intervals and an electronic, Morse Code-like tone chimes.

Allen's artistic vision began with a realistic bent: landscapes, figuratives and still lifes. But after meeting Wiggs, she dug into her feelings and "let the spirit take control." According to her website, Allen follows "visual intuitions" and explores a "poetic vision" to convey moods, rather than objects, as she turns toward abstraction. With that approach, "it's easy to start getting into a canvas or montage," she says. "The hard part is knowing when it's done."

Some abstract artists are averse to interpreting their work. Others say they want only to know how a piece makes viewers feel - ask at your peril if that cloudy figure in the corner is a bird.

For Wiggs, "if someone tells me they see a squirrel and I recognize the squirrel, I'm painting it out," says Wiggs. "Everyone wants to know the meaning behind an edgy piece of art or music. The question is often the answer because sometimes words fail us, and it's just about how we respond emotionally."

A joint opening reception for Poetry of Place; Translucent Hues, by Eileen Sackman; and a member group show is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. on March 8 at the BAU Gallery, 506 Main St. The exhibits continue through April 6. BAU Gallery is open Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 p.m., and by appointment. See baugallery.org.